It seems that life is all about timing. During the countdown to Le Tour, most journalists seem to be dusting off their cycling dictionary and bemoaning their editor’s remit to cover a sport that no one cares about. So I believe writers take the easy way out. They jump on the doping bandwagon.

As many of these annual cycling writers start filing their pre tour stories, I sense a decidedly negative turn in the overall tone of the written word. Sports Illustrated writes a Tour piece that spends virtually all of its space attacking Lance Armstrong. I saw little additional work done beyond cut and paste accusations from David Walsh’s book followed by cut and pasting Lance Armstrong’s denials. This article is more of an arrangement than an article. This arrangement is clearly made to create the impression that where there is smoke, there is fire.

The timing of the book is also meant to capitalize on the build-up to the Tour. Re-release many old stories, attach Floyd Landis to the title, and you have a fresh source of revenue. With all this timing to take advantage of the Tour de France, I have to believe that the USADA has to be looking to schedule it’s announcement during this time. So under a special dispensation from the Vatican, the Endless Cycle blog is dusting off it’s Floyd watch.

The world can now look to the virtual chimney at the USADA headquarters to see if the arbitrators have reached a decision. As of now, we still wait.